An Evaluation of use of Accelerated Loading Equipment for Determination of Fatigue Performance of Asphalt Pavement in Laboratory

In this study, a model hot mix asphalt (HMA) pavement was constructed in the laboratory and tested under repeated wheel load applications using Model Mobile Load Simulator 3 (MMLS3). This study presents a discussion on the background of MMLS3, production of test slabs, use of various strain gauges, loading, data acquisition using strain gauges in various directions and analysis of test results. Analysis of data showed the effect of wheel load on fatigue performance of the pavement in terms of strain history and cracking. Different phases of strain history have been identified and their role on fatigue performance discussed. A rational approach of calculation of strain corresponding to failure load applications has also been presented. A finite element model of MMLS3 pavement showed the usefulness of numerical solutions over closed form solutions with respect to effects of boundary conditions. The finite element model presented in this paper successfully described the behavior of the pavement loaded with t...